My view of the cow parade

Once upon a ring…not a fairy tale

I attended a ladies’ retreat several years ago with members of my church family. I enjoyed the fellowship and I still remember the exchanges we shared on Friday and Saturday probably more so because of the story I’m going to tell.

When we got to Sunday I accompanied a member of our congregation who was blind. We took communion and as we did, I looked down at my engagement ring and noticed the diamond was gone!

“I can’t cry out at a moment like this,” I thought. The service was carefully planned by our minister and his wife and it was perfect.

When the service was over my friend thanked me for helping her with the logistics of the service. And then she asked “Is there something wrong?”

Relieved to share my dilemma, I told her I had just discovered the diamond was missing from my engagement ring. I took my ring and her fingers so she could feel the empty prongs. “Oh,” she gasped. “Y’all she lost the diamond in her ring.” She called attention to what I just couldn’t do. Disturb the moment. Yet, I thanked her. All my friends searched in the patterns of the carpet where we had been sitting. No diamond.

My thoughts raced searching for some significance to losing that stone now, in this place, among friends during a perfect weekend. I also scolded myself for trying to tie my losing the diamond to a significant answer. “It’s lost, that’s all there is to it.” Others had shared stories of loss that weekend — loved ones, sight, their health. The diamond given to me by my husband was the least among such losses. Rick would understand. Or would he be terribly hurt…I had to find that diamond!

I couldn’t shake the feeling of emptiness. In denial, I kept looking at the prongs–empty–gone. Who knows where? I wanted to think angry thoughts. I even asked, “Why God, would I lose the stone, now, on a weekend like this? Why would you poison the memory with loss?”

“It’s somewhere, and if it’s here, I’m going to do all I can do to find it.”

I went to the elevator we had taken, and I alerted the concierge and bellhop. I returned to my room, searched the bathroom, bed linens and then just sat in a chair by the window. I called housekeeping to be on the lookout. Then I saw a glint by the foot of another chair. I got down on all fours and YES it was the stone from my ring!

“Thank you, God” I prayed in gratitude. I picked up my luggage, placed the loose diamond in my coin purse and when I got to the lobby many inquired about the diamond. “I found it! Thank you so much for your help.

The concierge probably eager to not incur any further mishaps on his watch gave me a sticky note and tape. “Here, for safe keeping.” So I stuck it onto that slip of paper and safely put it in my purse.

The diamond is stuck to the right. Thank you, Mr. Concierge.

In a way, I realized it wasn’t about me that day. I thought of all those who were affected by my loss. My friends, the hotel employees. My prayers were answered and so were the well wishes and prayers of others that day. I returned home to tell Rick this story and what could have been a routine annual retreat is not a blur but remembered by me, Rick and others. “Remember when you lost…?” they still reminisce. No this wasn’t a fairy tale but it certainly had a happy ending.

36 Responses

Oh, Georgette, I’m so happy that you found the diamond!! I can just imagine the emptiness you felt while it was missing. Rick would have understood, just as my JR would. The kindess of all those around you was a bit of a comfort, I’m sure.
Did you have the stone reset?

I knew you would ask that. No, I haven’t had it reset. I know. Shame on me. But I have given thought to changing it a bit–or not at all. I think I have been stuck on that thought. Perhaps writing this will get me out to do it. When I do, I will probably update this post for the family book and record it with another photo, the new setting.

The first thing that came to mind was the number of times I’ve gone searching for a contact lens in exactly the same way.

The second thing that came to mind is another woman’s story: “Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.”

Substitute “diamond” for coin, and there’s not a lick of difference – well, except that you had only one diamond and not ten. 😉

It’s a wonderful tale. And it’s it true that it’s the stories, not the things, that we remember best?

I do cherish that story of loss for just as you said and quoted from scripture “the rejoicing” was a sweet memory. I thought of the parable of the lost coin, but did not recall the best part…not just finding it but the “rejoicing” that ensued. Thank you for pointing that out to me.
btw I’m so glad you didn’t lose your keys when you took that plunge a few weeks ago. But I never asked you about a cell phone — I hope that didn’t fall casualty.

Oh no! Where can it be? And it hasn’t “surfaced” to this day?
I have a friend who has lost two diamond rings. Her husband wants to give her another. Her answer: “I don’t deserve it.” Oh gosh. She is deserving…but can we be a bit more careful?
Another story: I lost a gold earring — what a bummer they come in twos — I know grandson at age 2 picked it up when I went to take a bath. After I replaced my daily accessory of pierced gold earrings I found it years later in one of the drawers of my dresser that was probably wide open when I went to take the bath. So now I have two favorite sets of gold earrings. I search for meaning…which is simply rejoicing in the finding. Yep…that simple.

I have no idea. I have searched and searched. My cleaning lady misunderstood when I told her that I’d lost it, thinking i thought she was responsible. I know she’d never — and felt awful. I’m sure it’s somehow worked its way under the carpeting …

You’re right. Thank goodness something like that happened among such good friends. Perhaps that’s why I lagged in getting it reset. Searching for meaning. I knew my blogging friends would help point me to answers. I have sat on this story way too long. Thank you for your comment, MJ.

I’m an insurance agent. One of my clients called to say she had lost the diamond from her ring and I was sorry to have to tell her that losing a stone (or piece of jewelry) is not covered by the typical homeowners policy. You have to schedule the items and add to your policy. She was not happy.

A couple of days later she called to say she found it – in a bowl of potato salad in the fridge!

This reminded me of a group I took to Italy and one lady lost a diamond earring at the hotel. Noone could find it. We reported it to the concierge, but had to leave to continue the tour (with several other hotels and stops en route). At the end of the tour, the concierge at the final hotel held up a brown envelope. The earring had been found and mailed back to its owner! I suspect that trip is still vivid in her mind. 🙂

Georgette, I’m so glad you found the diamond. I probably would’ve been feeling awful about it, too. I was afraid, btw, that you were going to say, one of the other women in the retreat stole it. What a relief that wasn’t the case at all, for that would’ve been devastating, for it to happen in a church retreat.

What a great story! Happy you found the diamond – wasn’t that like a little miracle? I once lost an entire ring at church. I was devastated because it was my grandma’s wedding band. But one of my friends prayed with me that God would show us where it was. Lo and behold, we found it! It just showed me that even though we sometimes mistakenly place a lot of emphasis on our earthly treasures, God still cares about even the smallest things in answer to our prayers. 🙂

It was, mama. And as shoreacres pointed out, this story is so aligned with the Parable of the lost coin. What a joy to share my “find” with my friends and church family. On fb they have commented “I remember”…kinda wish they would comment here, too. So far…I’m not afraid to post these stories on the blogosphere.
Now you have me curious…so where did you find your grandma’s ring? I know it’s just a detail of places I do not know…still, I’m curious.

It was years ago when we lived in Oregon. I didn’t even know I had lost it until I looked at my hand during an Easter pageant rehearsal at church and it was gone! I had been all over the church that day, even outside. But we found it after we prayed in a far corner of the stage where it was pretty dark too. Amazing.